


Fire Away

by Munez



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Clint spends too much time playing video games, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-22
Updated: 2014-05-22
Packaged: 2018-01-26 03:20:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1672790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Munez/pseuds/Munez
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He was being beaten by a Nintendo Wii. He was the World's Greatest Marksman, he should at least be able to get a perfect score on the expert level of Archery. </p>
<p>Clint just needs a little help letting go.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fire Away

**Author's Note:**

> This was written after I spent too much time playing 'Wii Sports Resort' for Nintendo Wii. If anyone has ever played it, you will know that Clint's frustration is valid.

_The wire tenses. Back muscles tightens and lock. Slow your breathing. Exhale-- --relax your hand--_

Clint let go of the arrow, and watched it sail towards the target. It should have been a perfect shot- he's Hawkeye, he never misses- and he had even accounted for the wind, and the distance. It should have hit the bullseye.

It didn't. It hit the next circle out.

_"9!"_ came the cry from the game, and Clint looked around to check no one was watching.

He was being beaten by a Nintendo Wii. He was the World's Greatest Marksman, he should at least be able to get a perfect score on the expert level of Archery. 

...not that he'd spent the day getting perfect scores on beginners, and Intermediate. 

The beginners level was easy, even for him. He flew through the first three targets, getting perfect 10s every time. The final stage had required a little more thinking on his part, but he still managed to get perfect 10s, and a new high score (take that, Stark.)

He had to have a few tries at the Intermediate level, since the target started moving. Usually that didn't make a difference at all, but in this game where you were supposed to aim to compensate for the movement, the distance, and the wind speed, the arrow wouldn't end up where it was supposed to.

It was frustrating. 

He had spent the day hanging around the Tower, and the others were either off doing secret things (Natasha), or spending their time locked in a lab as usual (Bruce and Tony). He'd quickly become bored of trying to convince someone to do something with him- catch a movie, _anything_ \- and JARVIS had quickly pointed him to the wide variety of video games Tony kept in the lounge. 

He took a moment to grab a drink and just calm down a little bit, he didn't want to draw attention to himself by cursing at the game. He could do this, and he was going to do it with dignity. 

Shaking his hands a little to ward off any cramp that would dare try to come between him and the perfect score, he returned to the game. 

Staying calm helped through the first round, where he only just managed to get perfect 10s. He spent a moment where he almost forgot to breathe (and how ridiculous was that? It was just a game...) as the arrow only just managed to fly between the two boards of wood and hit the moving target. 

He was so sure when he let go that he'd mistimed it, and he was preparing to restart the level out of frustration. But the arrow sailed between the two boards, and landed just inside the bullseye, with a cry of _10!_

Okay. Two more rounds to go, and then the final stage. He could do this.

He told JARVIS not to let anyone disturb him, world emergency or not, and tried to stay calm. He'd got this.

Level two passed in a blur as he decided to get it over with quickly, like ripping off a bandaid. Thankfully he once again heard the _10!_ as the arrows all hit dead centre. 

This was it. Level three. The last level that mattered before the final stage. 

He was concentrating on the game and not on his surroundings- something that Natasha would have raised an eyebrow at. It was fine though, he was in the Tower and it wasn't like he wasn't paying attention on the middle of an op or something. 

He was about to let go for the final arrow, the last time he needed to get a 10! before the final stage, and just as he was about to let go--

"--Clint?" 

Dammit. 

He twitched. He couldn't help it- JARVIS was supposed to keep everyone out. He was expecting silence, apart from the game calling out the score...

_"9!"_

"No! Dammit, I almost had it! I was there! What was so--" Clint whirled around, desperate to see who had cost him his perfect score.

It was Coulson. 

Clint's anger seemed to deflate a little, and he spent longer than he'd like to admit debating whether to throw the controller at Coulson. 

"JARVIS told me that you were getting too worked up, and that I should distract you before you broke something" Coulson grinned, as if he hadn't just interrupted Clint on purpose.   
Clint ran a hand through his hair, and Coulson took a step closer. 

"I almost had it, Phil! I was one shot away from a perfect score!"

"It's just a game, Clint. It's the same as professional singers trying to play Sing Star or something, it never works because they actually know how to sing." 

"Yes, but _I had it!"_

"You're over-thinking it. Just point and shoot without thinking about angles, or trajectory" Phil shrugged, as if it would ever be that easy for Clint to switch off his brain when it came to shooting. 

"Fine. If it's that easy, here. You take a shot" Clint wasn't sulking, he _wasn't_ , but he may have handed over the controller with a little more force than necessary. 

The final stage loaded on screen, with the target now inside a volcano. It was quite a way away, and was slowly moving from side to side. This level was Clint's favourite because who thought it would be a good idea to have the final stage in a volcano?! 

It reminded him of some of the more difficult shots he'd had to take over the years- like the time he was aiming for a bad guy trying to run a few streets away, whilst he was perched on the top of a burning building. It was actually quite comforting to see a game with such a ridiculous final stage, but at the same time there was always a small part of Clint that thought it could one day be a possibility. 

With his life? It was more than likely. 

Phil just shrugged, picking up the controller and aiming it at the screen. He barely paused to aim, before just letting go and firing. 

_"9!"_ the game called, when Phil wasn't paying attention to the screen, but to Clint. 

"Want to bet that I can get a 10?" Phil smirked, and Clint felt like he was being hustled. 

"...not really" 

Phil laughed, before turning back to the game. Again he barely took a moment to aim, seemingly aiming the bow at random, and firing. 

As soon as he fired he turned away from the screen to watch Clint instead of the arrow. 

_"10!"_

Clint's hand twitched, and Phil wasn't sure if that was from the urge to hold his real bow where it would be familiar and respond how he knew it always would, or if it was from the urge to grab the controller and throw it through a window. 

"One shot left...want to have one last try?" Phil asked, carefully offering to controller to Clint. 

There was a tense moment where no one did anything, before Clint sighed, and took the controller. 

"'s a stupid game" Clint muttered, holding his arms up to aim it. The target was still slowly moving from left to right, and Clint once again focused on the screen, accounting a little for the distance, the height of the target, the--

"--no, see, none of that. It's a game, Clint. Designed mainly for kids or people who have never picked up a bow and arrow in their life. You need to think less, and just vaguely aim for the target, before letting go" 

Clint scowled, and lowered the controller. 

"But that's not accurate! That's not how archery works! I would hate to be an archery instructor after kids played this game- there would be a lot more arrow related injuries" 

Phil laughed, before stepping beside Clint. 

"Alright. You line up the shot, aim it, but don't fire until I say so" 

Clint just turned to look at Phil, waiting for him to explain. 

"Just trust me on this one? It'll be fun" Phil grinned and Clint sighed, knowing he had already lost the moment Phil had smiled. 

"Close your eyes" 

"I'm not closing my eyes!" 

"Look, do you want me to prove to you how stupid this game is, or not?" 

Clint aimed at the screen, and closed his eyes. He felt Phil move closer, and was almost tempted to open his eyes. 

"...now" 

Clint didn't hesitate, and fired. 

He opened his eyes and saw that Phil was standing in front of him, blocking the screen, and smiling at him. 

"Wait for it..."

_"10!"_

Clint couldn't help the laugh that escaped him. He'd managed to get a 10 on the final stage, _without even looking!_

...and with Phil's help. But that was beside the point. 

_"High Score!"_

Clint's hands twitched and he was _definitely_ going to throw the controller this time, because _come on_ that was not fair! 

"...Clint, put the controller down before you break something" Phil suggested, to which Clint just pouted. 

Phil leaned in and stole a quick kiss, waiting until Clint smiled before he pulled away.

"C'mon, I have a better idea" Phil smirked, and suddenly Clint couldn't care less that his high score was from a technicality. In fact, the stupid archery game was the last thing on his mind.

Clint raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah, what did you have in mind?" Clint moved closer to Phil, trying to press their hips together to show exactly what Clint had in mind.

Phil just smiled. 

* * 

_"C'mon! Just a bit more--"_

_"--faster! Dammit...faster!"_

_"Left a bit! Left, left!! That's it--there!--"_

_"YES!"_

Bruce paused behind the door of the living room, wondering if it was safe to go in. JARVIS had assured him nothing was going on that would scar him for life, but the shouting he heard was suggesting otherwise. 

Sighing, Bruce concluded that his need for tea outweighed the possible mental scarring he was about to receive, so he decided to just get it over with, and opened the door.

What he had expected to see was Clint and Phil in a compromising position. Again.

What he hadn't expected to see was Clint and Phil sitting one end of the couch, and Steve and Tony sitting the other end, playing a game on the Nintendo Wii.

Or more specifically, team canoe racing. 

"Ha! Pay up, Stark. You may have a super soldier, but you're no match for me and Phil. That's a hundred you owe me!"

"...best two out of three?" Tony complained, and Bruce shook his head, making his way to the kitchen. 

Canoe racing. 

Living in the Tower with Tony and Clint around, Bruce wondered if there was anything left any more that would actually surprise him.

**Author's Note:**

> as always, my tumblr is [munez](http://munez.tumblr.com/) if you want to bug/prompt me.


End file.
